CAUGHT ON CAMERA: Downtown building employee punches alleged homeless man after being attacked
AUSTIN, Texas (FOX 7 Austin) - Jared Carter hates that he had to take drastic measures against a homeless man Wednesday morning. "I'm very lucky I was able to do that. He could've taken advantage of who I was and what was going on," said Carter.
Carter said he noticed the man was outside of his building smoking, so he asked him to leave. "They are usually getting high or either K-2 or whatever substance they choose which are all felonious drugs. You cannot be participating in that on the streets at all. What set him off was that I asked him to leave the area for smoking a felonious drug," said Carter.
Carter says once he called police, the man attacked him.
"The guy that assaulted me is free walking down the street on the corner, I can see him. This is a problem. APD was not able to do anything for it," said Carter.
"When police arrived I believe they put him in handcuffs, got the stories from my employees and several other witnesses and determined he had not committed a crime, they took him out of handcuffs and sent him on his way," said Michael May, property manager.
The property manager says that same man returned on Thursday. "My sister was bringing her baby up to see the office, and he was blocking the door and would not let her past. She was terrified," said May.
May says he wants the homeless population to get the help they need, but he also wants city government to see things from their perspective. "It is disturbing. It makes you feel like you have no rights and these people are just running the streets and you are at their disposal," said May.
"We have an alleyway that's covered in defecation and urine right now," said Carter.
May would like to see a reconsideration of council's decision to decriminalize sitting, lying or camping. "A lot of people who are homeless are that way because they have mental health issues, they have drug addiction, there is just no safety net to take care of them. Letting them fester in the streets is no solution," said May.